FighterControl

Local garage has hit all customers with a £5 Covid PPE charge for any work over the last 18 months or so, felt kind of OK'ish at first but had an MoT this week with a £5 cost added and politely queried it still being charged, they got really quite defensive, which took me aback a bit to be honest and maybe suggests maybe other customers have similarly questioned it. Is this still standard everywhere? If it's a valid overhead shouldn't this just be included in their overall charging rate, bit like I guess Swarfega and paper covers for the seat are? Or was I being totally unreasonable questioning it?

"bit like I guess Swarfega and paper covers for the seat are"

these are usually covered under consumables which when you question it the usual answer would be oh screws/nuts bolts, etc etc , basically anything a garage use they charge for and have done for many years
i suspect most these days don`t even show it on the bill, just the total cost

I would say £5 you are lucky I bet some garages are charging a lot more

Find a new garage. A service manager once got defensive with me when I pointed out the washer bottle was already full so the £5 charge for washer fluid was “dubious”.

Sounds like a money making scam dreamed up in the pub to me

How much did you pay for the MOT? The maximum charge allowed is £54.85.
This definitely is a money grabbing exercise and wouldn’t use them again.
Where I work we don’t charge for any consumables and haven’t heard of anyone putting a covid charge on top of the bill.

Thanks for responses, so it looks like it's not widespread, time to find a new garage methinks.

Name and Shame
Just had a car in for an MOT and no extra charge but last year I was charged £3 to cover an extra clean after a service, and was told this was to protect me????
I will not go back to that garage.

Slightly off the topic - barber attempted to charge a £2 'covid charge' on top of his advertised prices on the door - not happening!